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Simonsig Road to Concours Mondial Gold Driven by Diversity

17 May 2017 - Simonsig Wine Estate

Simonsig Estate’s two Gold Medals won at this year’s Concours Mondial de Bruxelles is a tribute to the well-known Stellenbosch wine farm’s ability to produce a diverse range of terroir-expressive wines.

At this year’s competition Simonsig scored Gold Medals for the famed Redhill Pinotage 2014 as well as its iconic Cuvée Royale Cap Classique 2012, a South African wine category pioneered by Simonsig founder the late Frans Malan.

Recognised as one of the world’s leading wine competitions, the annual Concours Mondial attracts thousands of entries from wine countries around the world which are then judged by teams of prominent international wine judges.

According to Simonsig cellarmaster and co-owner Johan Malan, the awards are a tribute to the diversity of the Estate’s terroir as well as the versatility and talents of the wine making team.

“To see a Pinotage and Cap Classique from the same farm achieve such excellent results underscores the ability of Stellenbosch’s terroir to provide grapes expressing a range of varietal diversity,” says Johan. “This is something that makes our region truly unique and the ability to produce excellent wines from different cultivars within one area, such as Simonsig’s Stellenbosch address, has become a feature for which Stellenbosch is recognised the world over.”

The Redhill Pinotage is one of South Africa’s most famous and awarded Pinotage wines and originates from vineyards growing on a unique weathered shale site on the Simonsig Estate. Cuvée Royale is a Blanc de Blancs Cap Classique crafted from Chardonnay exclusively and allowed to develop on the lees for 60 months for complexity and richness.

“This year’s Concours Mondial Gold Medals acknowledge Simonsig’s heritage,” says Johan. “Pinotage was the first red wine to be released from the Estate. And as the birthplace of South Africa’s Cap Classique category we are honoured to have achieved a Gold Medal for Cuvée Royale 46 years after the first Cap Classique was released from our farm.”

Johan says that with the proliferation of wines as well as wine-producing countries, international competitions play an important role for producers and consumers alike.

“To be awarded in this manner at an international competition such as Concours Mondial has deep meaning for us. The Gold Medals do look good on the bottles, but the recognition as indicator of you and your wines being on the right track when placed before international critics is of even greater importance.

“In South Africa alone there are over 8000 wine labels, and the average wine consumer literally does not know where to begin when looking for a wine,” he says.

“Competition results help the consumer by giving awarded wines a hallmark of proven quality which assists the consumer in negotiating market clutter. So apart from honouring our wines and our cellar team, results such as those at Concours Mondial are important in furthering Simonsig’s reputation as a producer of a diverse range of quality wines offering provenance and a true sense of place.”